Consultant Cardiologist, Dr Rae Duncan (@Sunny_Rae1), was interviewed today on BBC’s Sunday Show.

In this thread 🧵, I’ve pulled out some of the key highlights.

Kudos to Martin Geissler (@mmgeissler) who had clearly done his homework in advance & asked excellent questions.

1/
Dr Rae Duncan kicks off by explaining that Covid is not ‘just a cold’.

She explains that, if we think of Covid simply in terms of the acute stage of infection, we are only looking at the tip of the iceberg…

…but the bulk of the iceberg lies beneath the surface.

2/
Martin: “In Canada, they’re finding if you’ve had 3 or more Covid infections, you’ve got a 38% chance of getting Long Covid. Can that be right?”

Dr Rae Duncan explains how many studies show that, the more times you get infected, the higher your risk of developing Long Covid.

3/
Martin: “Can you just as easily get organ damage, brain issues, heart issues from Long Covid if you’re young & healthy?”

Dr Rae Duncan explains how EVERYONE is at risk. Many of her Long Covid patients were previously young, fit & healthy; some were even amateur athletes.

4/
Dr Rae Duncan explains how this Winter has been devastating for some of her patients as so many have been reinfected with Covid…

…and all the hard work put in to try to get them better, to get them back to work or back to school, has all been completely undone again.

5/
Martin: “Are we taking this seriously enough as a country?”

Dr Rae Duncan explains how our government need to start listening to the WHO advice.

If we don’t get a handle on the high Covid transmission rates, hundreds of millions are going to require longer term care.

6/
Dr Rae Duncan explains how studies have repeatedly shown that cleaning the air (by improving ventilation & air filtration) can significantly reduce Covid outbreaks in schools & improve school attendance rates…

…and it protects against other airborne pathogens too.

7/
Martin: “Are we too laissez-faire about Covid at the moment?”

Dr Rae Duncan explains how she’s very concerned about the longer term implications of Long Covid.

Economic modelling already shows that Long Covid might be costing the UK economy billions of pounds EVERY YEAR.

8/
Dr Rae Duncan wraps up by explaining that we have to learn to live with Covid SAFELY…

…and that should start with basic measures like clean air in schools & hospitals.

Finally, Martin gives a poignant anecdote about one of his camera crew who is suffering from Long Covid.

9/
A massive thank you to Dr Rae Duncan (@Sunny_Rae1), Martin Geissler (@mmgeissler) and @BBCScotland for this brilliant interview, raising awareness about the devastating impact of Long Covid.

You can watch the full show at the link below:

🔗

/ENDbbc.co.uk/programmes/m00…
UPDATE: As requested, here’s a YouTube link to the full interview, kindly posted by @ABrokenBattery.

BBC Scotland Sunday Show (4 Jan 2024)
Martin Geissler (@mmgeissler) interviews Consultant Cardiologist Dr Rae Duncan (@Sunny_Rae1) about Long Covid.

🔗
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More from @_CatintheHat

Jun 25
The UK is currently sweltering in a serious heatwave.

Over 1,000 schools have been forced to shut or close early due to the extreme heat.

Unsurprisingly, questions have been raised about air-conditioning for schools since heatwaves are likely to become increasingly common…

/1 Image
However, if air-conditioning does get the green light🚦, I just hope those involved in implementation look at the bigger picture.

The thing is, most air-con systems do *not* bring in fresh air from outside.

They simply cool & recirculate the existing air from the room.

/2 Image
And, in order for the air-con to be effective, it’s often recommended to close windows to stop warm outdoor air from flooding in.

BUT, in a practically airtight classroom with ~30 kids all breathing continuously, CO₂ levels will rapidly build up…



/3 the-educator.org/why-air-condit…Image
Read 9 tweets
May 15
🚨“Why COVID could be to blame for the rise in deadly meningitis”

“When people regularly catch Meningitis B bacteria, they usually live harmlessly in the nose.”

“The problem is that COVID may have made our cells more susceptible to the bacteria.”

dailymail.com/health/article… x.com/dailymail/stat…Image
A growing number of scientists have been sounding the alarm recently about how repeated Covid infections may be damaging our immune systems…

bmj.com/content/390/bm…Image
This is not a particularly new idea; it’s been discussed in scientific circles for years already.

Back in early 2023, the World Health Network (@TheWHN) published this article which summarised the latest research on Covid’s impact on the immune system.

whn.global/scientific/cov…Image
Read 9 tweets
May 14
HANTAVIRUS OUTBREAK

A WHO representative was interviewed on GMB this morning.

She said that if someone self-isolating at home starts to feel sick, they should immediately remove themselves from company & start wearing a mask…

…but that’s NOT what the WHO guidance says… 🧵
The guidance is clear that those self-isolating at home should NOT wait for symptoms before taking precautions.

For the ENTIRE 42-day quarantine, they should:
▪️Avoid contact with other household members
▪️Remain in a separate room
▪️If contact is unavoidable, wear a respirator Image
🚨Clinically Vulnerable Families (@cv_cev) have issued a press release calling for the government to immediately publish the full operational & clinical arrangements for passengers & close contacts linked to the MV Hondius outbreak.

Transparency is essential at this point. Image
Read 13 tweets
May 11
HANTAVIRUS OUTBREAK:

I’ve just listened to the health update from the US Nebraska Health Officials 🇺🇸

A few points of interest:

1/ in addition to the US passenger who tested positive & the one showing symptoms, it seems there is ANOTHER passenger who may have tested positive.
2/ Passengers currently in the Nebraska quarantine unit will spend a few days there being assessed.

If they remain symptom free & have support available at home to isolate safely, they’ll have the choice to complete the 42-day isolation either at home or in the quarantine unit.
3/ When asked about the US passengers who left the ship in St Helena on 24 Apr (at the same time at the Dutch woman who was symptomatic & sadly died on 26 Apr), they confirmed that these passengers have all been traced & are being monitored - but seems they’re NOT self-isolating.
Read 10 tweets
May 10
HANTAVIRUS OUTBREAK

Following my thread yesterday which criticised aspects of the WHO’s strategy, I’m pleased to see they’ve done a 180° turn in the updated guidance published today:

who.int/docs/default-s…

EVERYONE from the ship will now be treated as HIGH-RISK contacts…

🧵 x.com/_catinthehat/s…Image
…and ALL high-risk contacts will now be required to ISOLATE in a designated facility or at home (depending on each country’s capabilities) for 42 days from last known exposure…

…and for the MV Hondius passengers & crew, the last day of exposure is the date of disembarkation. Image
So for the passengers & crew leaving the ship today, the clock for their 42 days in isolation starts ticking TODAY…

…and their isolation & monitoring will end on 21 June. Image
Read 7 tweets
May 9
HANTAVIRUS OUTBREAK 🧵

Following the WHO press briefing, I wanted to compile a thread with the key points.

1/ ISOLATION OF PASSENGERS

Concerningly, it seems the WHO are NOT recommending to isolate cruise ship passengers (even high-risk contacts) UNLESS they develop symptoms.
Just to quickly recap, it has been confirmed that the passengers & crew (including the 30 who disembarked on 24 April in St Helena) come from a total of 28 different countries.

The full breakdown of countries for both passengers 🟥 & crew 🟦 is detailed below ⬇️ Image
When the 146 people remaining on the ship are repatriated to their home countries, each country will adopt their own local protocols.

However, the WHO are only recommending:

▪️SYMPTOMATIC cases ➡️ isolation
▪️ASYMPTOMATIC cases ➡️ monitoring
Read 41 tweets

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